{"id":14997,"date":"2000-09-14T13:56:30","date_gmt":"2000-09-14T17:56:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/?p=14997"},"modified":"2025-02-27T12:04:42","modified_gmt":"2025-02-27T17:04:42","slug":"up-in-smoke-by-starlite","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/?p=14997","title":{"rendered":"Up in Smoke (by Starlite)"},"content":{"rendered":"

Summary:<\/strong>\u00a0One of the Cartwright sons learns about the evils of smoking.<\/p>\n

Rated:<\/strong>\u00a0 G\u00a0 (9,500 words)<\/p>\n

Up in Smoke<\/strong><\/p>\n

Little Joe Cartwright came bounding down the angled wooden stairway of the sprawling Ponderosa ranch house.\u00a0 He’d just tossed this night’s homework assignment on his bed and was on his way out to the barn to complete his chores before dinner.\u00a0 Grabbing the railing he hopped over the side of the stairs to bypass the last couple of steps.\u00a0 He impressed himself with the way he nailed his landing, due to his boot heels hitting the well-polished hardwood floor without needing to take a stabling step.\u00a0 Feeling quite cocky and self-confident, he began an easy stroll to the front door.<\/p>\n

Out of the corner of his eye he caught something of interest.\u00a0 Sitting on the small round card table near the stairs, was his Pa’s small pipe stand with its pouch of tobacco.\u00a0 Immediately, he was taken back to a conversation he’d overheard at school during the lunch break.\u00a0 He vividly recalled three of the older boys hiding behind the outhouse, each taking their turn smoking a cigar that one of them had brought to school that day.<\/p>\n

Those boys didn’t have much to do with Joe and he was a little envious because they were bigger and older than he was.\u00a0 Joe wanted desperately to be a part of that crowd, but those teens felt he was too young to hang around with them.\u00a0 He thought if he could join in on their activities, that maybe he could be accepted into their close knit circle.<\/p>\n

Joe eyed his father’s pipe, then glanced about the large main room to see if anyone else was about.\u00a0 Feeling secure, Joe went over to the table and quickly snatched the pipe, the pouch of tobacco and a few matches.\u00a0 Turning around he began to make his way for the front door.<\/p>\n

His hasty retreat was stopped short as he saw the massive door swing towards him.\u00a0 Unable to put the ill-gotten property back and nowhere to stow the booty secretly away.\u00a0 Joe abruptly moved his arms behind him and stepped backward from the door.<\/p>\n

Ben and Adam Cartwright had just spent the day out surveying a stand of timber.\u00a0 Both were in deep conversation for\u00a0 its potential uses, as they entered the great ranch house.<\/p>\n

“Hi Pa!”\u00a0 Little Joe offered a little too eagerly.<\/p>\n

“Joseph.”\u00a0 Raising a wary eyebrow towards his youngest, Ben returned the greeting using his youngest son’s given name.<\/p>\n

“Adam.”<\/p>\n

“Joe.”\u00a0 Smirking, Adam raised a bemused eyebrow, he appraised his father’s reaction to Little Joe’s overly friendly welcome.\u00a0 Seeing the look on his father’s face, Adam knew instantly that Joe’s goose would soon be cooked.\u00a0 Now all he had to do was sit back and enjoy the show, he was certain he’d find out what type of cookie jar Joe’s hand was stuck in.<\/p>\n

To the Cartwright patriarch, the boy seemed a little too nervous and jovial, which put Ben instantly on guard.\u00a0 Mentally he tried to appraise what type of mischief his youngest was probably up to.\u00a0 Maybe a note from his teacher, Miss Jones?\u00a0 No, Joe usually left those for just after breakfast, so he could escape to school before his father could mete out his punishment.\u00a0 Short-sheeted Hoss’s bed?\u00a0 That didn’t seem likely after the youngster had tried that the week before, and ended up being tied up in his own sheets like a baby in a papoose by his larger brother.\u00a0 Put mud in Adam’s boots?\u00a0 Couldn’t have, Adam had them on.<\/p>\n

Ben’s mind furiously worked down the list of common pranks and known trouble his last child was notorious for.\u00a0 He studied the nervously fidgeting boy while Little Joe tried to edge out of the room walking backwards toward the kitchen.<\/p>\n

“Stop right there young man.”\u00a0 Ben ordered, raising his head in sudden inspiration.<\/p>\n

“Ye-s-s P-a.” Stammering, Joe realized that his little plan was rapidly unraveling.<\/p>\n

“Come here.”\u00a0 Ben directed, pointing to a spot on the floor a few paces in front of him.<\/p>\n

“Whatcha need Pa?”\u00a0 Little Joe inquired, using his best innocent tone replete with raised eyebrows.<\/p>\n

“Show me your hand?”\u00a0 Ben calmly requested in his best authoritative fatherly voice.<\/p>\n

Joe hesitated just a moment to look at Adam, then back at his father.\u00a0 Complying, he smiled broadly as he held out his open left hand.<\/p>\n

Adam closed his eyes, and raised his arms to cross his chest, before beginning to rock on his heels.\u00a0 This is going to be good!<\/em><\/p>\n

“Your other one.”\u00a0 Ben instructed.\u00a0 He’d been down this road too many times before.\u00a0 Out of the corner of his eye, he shot his oldest son a small warning glance.<\/p>\n

Adam watched as Joe replaced his left hand behind his back, and shifted the contents from the right one before displaying an empty palm to their father.\u00a0 Adam winced and shook his head, he knew that maneuver was one of the oldest tricks in the book, and that it had never worked for him.\u00a0 He doubted that it ever worked for Hoss.\u00a0 So it wasn’t going to work for his baby brother, Little Joe was definitely out of luck, because his father was on to him.<\/p>\n

“Both hands!”\u00a0 Ben barked, running out of patience with his youngest son’s tomfoolery.<\/p>\n

Little Joe could feel the blood drain from his face, as a trickle of sweat formed on his forehead to run down from his brow and onto his nose.\u00a0 Panicked and knowing he was caught; Joe turned pleading eyes to his oldest brother hoping for Adam’s intervention.\u00a0 Seeing no help from the brother corner, Little Joe swallowed, took a deep breath and produced his left hand.<\/p>\n

Adam shook his head in mild amusement then raised his right hand to cover his broad smile, hoping to muffle the laugh that was threatening to erupt.\u00a0 He was trying to take heed of his father’s silent caution not to encourage his little brother’s errant behavior by laughing.<\/p>\n

Ben instantly recognized the items displayed in his youngest child’s outstretched hands.\u00a0 He was furious.\u00a0 Not only were they things that belonged to him, but they were things that his son was forbidden to touch.<\/p>\n

“Would you care to explain what you are doing with my pipe?”\u00a0 Feeling his blood begin to boil, Ben started to mentally count to ten.<\/p>\n

“No, Papa.”\u00a0 Using the diminutive for his father, Little Joe donned his best innocent expression and answered in his most child-like tone of voice, hoping it would gain him mercy from his Pa.<\/p>\n

This display resulted in a small snort of laughter escaping from Adam’s throat before he could stop it.\u00a0 Seeing he now had his father’s steely-eyed very irate glare pointed in his direction, Adam shrugged and raised his eyebrows in a silent apology.\u00a0 Deciding he needed to observe this little interplay from a safer position, Adam made his way over to the alcove and took up residence on a corner of his father’s desk.<\/p>\n

Waiting until Adam had left the near vicinity, Ben returned his full attention back to his youngest.\u00a0 Ben drew in a deep breath and restarted his mental count before placing both hands upon his hips and addressing Little Joe.<\/p>\n

“No Papa?”\u00a0 His father’s voice held the hint of a menacing tone, causing Joe to swallow once again and more sweat to trickle down from the boy’s brow.\u00a0 He found his throat growing drier by the second and wondered when those cotton balls had found their way into his mouth.<\/p>\n

Adam drew his lips into a small bemused frown.\u00a0 Raising appraising eyebrows then cocking his head to the side, he considered his little brother’s reply.\u00a0 Nice try, good shot just failed to hit the target, Adam silently mused.\u00a0 Afterall, his father had asked Joe if he would care to explain, not would he explain.<\/p>\n

“No Papa.”\u00a0 Ben again repeated Joe’s impertinent reply, staring his young son down.\u00a0 Seeing no change or further response from Joe, he decided he would give his son a little time to think about changing his mind.<\/p>\n

“Fine, you will go up to your room and wait for me there.”<\/p>\n

Relieved that he had a reprieve, at least for the immediate future, Joe turned to run from the room to the stairs.\u00a0 He’d only made it a couple of steps before being called back.<\/p>\n

“Joseph!”<\/p>\n

Little Joe turned back to face his father and saw the silver-haired man with right hand extended before him.\u00a0 Carefully, Joe returned and approached his father warily.\u00a0 Gingerly as though the hand would bite, he placed his father’s ill-gotten pipe, pouch of tobacco and matches into his Pa’s open palm.<\/p>\n

“Don’t you ever touch my pipe again, young man.”\u00a0 Waving his left index finger towards Little Joe’s face, Ben issued the explicit warning.<\/p>\n

Turning, Joe attempted to make a quick getaway but without success when he heard a loud ‘Smack’ and felt a resounding slap to his lower backside.\u00a0 With even more impetus, Joe picked up his pace fearing that it was just a hint of things to come.<\/p>\n

“Walk Joseph.”<\/p>\n

Joe instantly froze at the sound of his father’s voice.\u00a0 Immediately he heeded the warning and slowed his pace.\u00a0 He was in enough trouble already.\u00a0 The boy had just reached the foot of the stairs when he heard the welcoming sound of his best friend and ally.<\/p>\n

“Hey Adam, yore trunk’s arrived!”\u00a0 Hoss yelled jumping down from the buckboard heavily laden with supplies and a lone piece of luggage.<\/p>\n

“Alright!”\u00a0 Adam used his hands to push his frame upward from the corner of the desk to hop onto his feet.<\/p>\n

Adam had been waiting for this chest to arrive since returning home from college a couple of months earlier.\u00a0 It had been impossible for Adam to cart the chest with him when he traveled home the thousands of miles across the country by train, stagecoach and horseback.\u00a0 The cost to have the trunk sent home via train then overland freight had also been too expensive, so his Grandfather had it shipped to San Francisco first.<\/p>\n

Joe stopped and turned back hoping for another reprieve.\u00a0 He’d really enjoyed the things that Adam had brought back from New England when he first returned from college, and was just as eagerly awaiting the arrival of Adam’s trunk.\u00a0 Hoping his father wouldn’t notice; Joe nonchalantly strolled toward the front door.<\/p>\n

“Not so fast young man,” Ben issued a stern warning while pointing his right index finger in his youngest son’s direction.\u00a0 “You, I believe, have a date with your room.”<\/p>\n

Disappointed, Joe sighed deeply as his shoulders sagged in defeat.\u00a0 He knew his luck had run out.<\/p>\n

***************<\/p>\n

“Boy Adam, whatcha done got in there?\u00a0 Those New England Granite rocks?”\u00a0 Hoss complained, taking a deep inhale between each question.\u00a0 He stopped to catch his breath and wipe the sweat from his brow upon reaching the second floor landing.<\/p>\n

“Quit complaining and lift.”\u00a0 Adam barely gasped out huffing and puffing deeply.\u00a0 He was afraid he would topple backwards down the stairs if his brother didn’t start moving again soon.<\/p>\n

Ben stood back and watched the spectacle on the stairs, maintaining a safe distance between him and his two struggling sons.\u00a0 He’d been forewarned by Adam’s grandfather about the trunk, chuckling he remembered his old captain’s warning. ‘Ben, my boy, you’re going ta need a yoke of oxen, an elephant and a couple of sturdy camels to get that two ton crate to your land.\u00a0 That’s if the ship doesn’t sink first!’\u00a0 Well, the ship didn’t sink and he would just have to make do with the two strong backs of his sons.<\/p>\n

Waiting until his sons had successfully navigated the stairs and hallway, Ben made his way up the staircase.\u00a0 He briefly stopped at Adam’s doorway before heading to his youngest son’s room for a necessary little ‘talk’.<\/p>\n

***************<\/p>\n

Leaning against the open doorway to Adam’s room, Ben observed the somewhat comical scene before him.\u00a0 He watched as Adam took each book and carefully wiped its cover with a soft cloth before placing it onto his wall shelf, while Hoss continued to dig through the chest scattering items onto the bed, desk and floor, wherever he could find a place to put something.<\/p>\n

Adam tried to sort through his belongings, while trying patiently to retrieve his things from Hoss and answer his younger brother’s questions at the same time.\u00a0 The room looked like a tornado had struck it with clothes, books and other assorted items from Adam’s long awaited trunk strewn about the room in total chaos.<\/p>\n

“Adam, something done ate part of this here jacket.”\u00a0 Hoss sorrowfully informed his brother holding up a short-waisted black jacket with long tails.<\/p>\n

Glancing over his shoulder at his socially na\u00efve brother, Adam recognized the object in question and calmly replied.\u00a0 “No Hoss, that’s the way it was made.”<\/p>\n

“Oh, seems to me ya got a little gypped.”\u00a0 With his brow wrinkled and his upper lip curled in obvious disgust, Hoss voiced his complaint still eyeing the strange coat held aloft by the fingers of his large hands.<\/p>\n

Folding his arms across his chest, Ben smiled warmly when Adam took the suit coat from Hoss’s hands and draped it over the back of the wooden chair near his desk.<\/p>\n

In curiosity, Hoss picked up a long band of white satin cloth that was folded into small pleats.\u00a0 The large teen studied the object, turning it over and back again cocking his head to one side.\u00a0 Uncertain as to its purpose, he questioned his all-knowing older brother.<\/p>\n

“Uh Adam, what’s this here thing fer?”<\/p>\n

Taking a small deep breath Adam glanced into the mirror before him, so he could see what Hoss was now referring to.<\/p>\n

“It’s a cummerbund.”<\/p>\n

“Oh.”\u00a0 Hoss nodded his head as though he totally understood what his brother had just told him.\u00a0 He waited a few seconds until his curiosity once again got the better of him and asked, “Whatcha cover yer bun for?”<\/p>\n

Continuing to observe from the doorway, Ben moved a hand to cover his mouth before laughing at the inquiry.<\/p>\n

Taking yet another deep breath, Adam turned his full attention to his brother.\u00a0 “Not a ‘cover your bun’, a cummerbund.”\u00a0 Adam explained taking the object in question from Hoss’s large beefy hands, then demonstrated how it was worn.\u00a0 “See?”<\/p>\n

“Ah, yeah.\u00a0 That’s right purty.”<\/p>\n

Rolling his eyes heavenward and feeling silly modeling the cummerbund for Hoss, Adam quickly removed the garment and tossed it over the jacket on the chair back.\u00a0 Several minutes passed while Hoss sorted through more of Adam’s things, while Adam managed to clean and place more books onto the shelf.\u00a0 Adam returned his focus to his large little brother when he heard a small cough now demanding his attention.<\/p>\n

Not knowing how to voice his question, but wanting to know how his older brother had gotten the white starched ladies blouse with the frilly ruffled front.\u00a0 Hoss inconspicuously coughed to clear his throat.<\/p>\n

His patience beginning to wear thin with all of his younger brother’s curiosity and nosiness, Adam turned once more and annoyingly deadpanned. “Yes?”<\/p>\n

Adam felt his face flush red at the object Hoss was holding up in his hands in silent inquiry.\u00a0 He knew Hoss would never believe that the item now in question was actually a man’s shirt.\u00a0 He also didn’t want to explain that it was something he actually wore.\u00a0 Hoss definitely wasn’t the type for fancy balls, operas or formal dinners.<\/p>\n

Chuckling and shaking his head, Ben decided that his eldest had been tortured enough for one day.<\/p>\n

“Time for dinner boys.”\u00a0 Ben announced from the open doorway then turned away.<\/p>\n

At the pronouncement of an impending meal, Hoss lost all interest in the article of clothing in his hands.\u00a0 Dropping it to the floor, Hoss hastily followed his father into hall.<\/p>\n

Thankful for his father’s intervention, Adam retrieved the dress shirt from the floor and tossed it over to the chair to join the rest of his clothes.<\/p>\n

***************<\/p>\n

Satisfied, Adam surveyed his now organized and tidy room.\u00a0 All of his books had been dusted and meticulously stored upon either the shelves in his room or the bookcase downstairs.\u00a0 The suit that so intrigued his younger brother had been put into a garment bag and hung in his wardrobe.\u00a0 Gratified that all of his belongings were where they belonged, Adam retrieved one of his newly arrived books from the shelf and headed for the bed.\u00a0 He stopped short when he noticed the small wooden box he had placed there earlier.\u00a0 Lifting the lid, he found a small coin, a leather pouch and a velvet bag.<\/p>\n

Picking up the gold coin, Adam rubbed the cool etched surface between his right thumb and index finger.\u00a0 It was the sacred token that denoted he was a member of an elite group of scholars called the Honor Society.\u00a0 Adam fondly recalled evenings spent in educated and sometimes heated debates and discussions over current events, politics or literary works.\u00a0 Adam felt a tinge of regret, for those times were now gone.\u00a0 Replacing the coin into the box, Adam fingered the velvet bag before picking it up and releasing its contents into the palm of his hand.<\/p>\n

Adam fingered the smooth grain of the wooden pipe between his fingers.\u00a0 Studying the smoking implement, he recalled his first Honor Society meeting.\u00a0 He remembered how nervous and out of place he felt as he was escorted about the wood paneled room.\u00a0 Though he knew he was more than equal with the rest of his peers based upon his academic performance, this did nothing to allay his uneasiness.\u00a0 With each new introduction his anxiety grew while he was questioned about who he was, where he’d come from and what he was interested in.<\/p>\n

Smiling, he recounted one of the last individuals he met, the only one not to interrogate him about his life.\u00a0 Instead of the prodding questions, the other young man just offered him a cigar and a light.\u00a0 Not wanting to offend, or be instantly outcast from the group, he had placed the tight roll of tobacco between his lips and allowed the other man to light it.\u00a0 Adam took a deep inhale which resulted immediately in a retaliating cough and gag.\u00a0 His face blushed when he remembered the rest of the room joining in with laughter as he was slapped upon his back before being assured “don’t worry, it happens to all of us.”\u00a0 For the first time, Adam truly felt he belonged.<\/p>\n

Adam shook his head fondly at the memory.\u00a0 He never really cared for the cigars, so he decided he’d get a pipe like his father instead.\u00a0 Within weeks, several of the other members abandoned their cigars trading them in for pipes as well.<\/p>\n

Placing the pipe back into the box, Adam picked up the small leather pouch and opened the flap.\u00a0 He could smell the deep fragrant aroma of the tobacco he found there and was surprised it was still reasonably fresh.\u00a0 Even though Adam never really cared for smoking that much, the smell brought back pleasant times among good friends.\u00a0 In a silent toast to dear friends and times now past, Adam reached for his pipe and began to fill the bowl.<\/p>\n

Ben headed up the stairs after banking the large fire for the night.\u00a0 It had been a long day, made even longer by a run in with his youngest over the evils of smoking and the taking of things that didn’t belong to him. His smallest child now had a few things to think about, including new ways to sit for the next few days.\u00a0 It had been a difficult lecture for Ben to deliver without sounding like a hypocrite, because he himself smoked a pipe, but it was definitely not something he would tolerate from his young son.<\/p>\n

Walking down the hall, Ben stopped when he noticed the light was still on in his eldest son’s room.\u00a0 Knocking softly, he waited until Adam granted permission for him to enter.\u00a0 He was surprised by the sight that greeted him.<\/p>\n

Sitting in the chair a book across his lap and feet propped up on the bed was his son smoking a pipe.\u00a0 Ben took a moment to recover from the shock and gather his wits about him before addressing his son.<\/p>\n

“Uh son,” Ben hesitated uncertain how to proceed, Adam was no longer a boy and he couldn’t just forbid him from smoking like he had with Joe.<\/p>\n

Adam glanced from his book to his father and pulled the pipe from his mouth.\u00a0 He could sense his father was not pleased with his recent discovery.\u00a0 Adam waited patiently for his father to continue.<\/p>\n

“Adam, I know you’re a man now and entitled to smoke if you choose.\u00a0 All I ask is that act responsibly, and that you not smoke in your room.”\u00a0 Ben had heard many tales of people who had fallen asleep while smoking and the thought of that happening to his son terrified him.<\/p>\n

Nodding his head in silent acceptance.\u00a0 Adam rose and tapped out the contents of the bowl into the small ashtray that was sitting on his nightstand, before placing the pipe beside it.<\/p>\n

“Night son.”\u00a0 Ben said, turning he closed the door behind him.<\/p>\n

“Night Pa.”\u00a0 Adam replied watching his father depart before deciding he’s better get to bed.<\/p>\n

***************<\/p>\n

Little Joe threw down his pencil and snatched up the paper he’d been writing.\u00a0 Crumpling it into a ball, he threw it on the floor to join the others.\u00a0 He was frustrated and angry over the punishment that he’d been dealt.\u00a0 Three days ago, his father had sentenced him to spend his Saturday writing an essay on the joys of fishing, instead of letting him go fishing with some of his school friends.\u00a0 An essay his snooty smart aleck oldest brother was going to review.<\/p>\n

Realizing he’d now run out of fresh paper, Joe stomped down the hall heading for his father’s desk.\u00a0 He stopped at Adam’s room, deciding Adam always had paper and it would save him an unnecessary trip downstairs.\u00a0 Joe reasoned that if he had to write it and Adam was going to grade it, then it should be written on Adam’s paper.<\/p>\n

Joe rifled through his brother’s desk drawer, helping himself to a small stack of clean paper and a couple of fresh pencils.\u00a0 With mission complete, Joe’s focus returned to his immediate surroundings.\u00a0 His attention turned to something new he’d never noticed before.\u00a0 His curiosity piqued he approached his brother’s nightstand.<\/p>\n

There on Adam’s side table sat a pipe, just like their father’s.\u00a0 Joe eyed it carefully, then looked about the room for any unseen observers before picking it up.\u00a0 Deciding he couldn’t do any harm and he would replace it before Adam knew it was missing, Joe quickly filled it with tobacco and tucked the pipe into his back jeans pocket before he ran from the room.\u00a0 Reaching the main room, Joe scanned the area for Hop Sing, finding the man nowhere in sight, he snatched a couple of matches from the hearth before heading for the front door.<\/p>\n

“Gonna go do my chores!”\u00a0 Joe called out to no one in particular slamming the door behind him.\u00a0 He never heard the angry Chinese uttered in response to the loud closing of the front door.<\/p>\n

Reaching the barn, Joe surveyed his surroundings and counted the horses.\u00a0 His family was still out and wouldn’t be expected for hours.<\/p>\n

Pulling the pipe from his back pocket, Joe gave the room another quick scan before putting it into his mouth.\u00a0 With a hand shaking from the adrenaline rush of nervous anticipation, he lit the match on the wooden support beam of the barn wall.\u00a0 Still trembling he moved the flame towards the bowl of the pipe.<\/p>\n

***************<\/p>\n

Riding into the yard at a slow trot, Adam was eternally grateful for his father giving him an early reprieve.\u00a0 He was almost asleep on his feet.\u00a0 Two nights ago, he and Hoss had spent the entire night delivering a new colt into the world, and now Adam was regretting not taking his father up on the offer to sleep in the previous day.<\/p>\n

Dismounting, Adam tried to stretch out some of the kinks in his back.\u00a0 Rolling his head from side to side, he futilely attempted to release the tension in his neck.\u00a0 Patting Sport upon the neck, Adam pulled the spirited horse towards the barn while talking to his cherished mount.<\/p>\n

“Time to take a nap.”\u00a0 Adam yawned then blinked sleepily as he led his horse into the barn.\u00a0 He stopped short and spun to his left, startled by the sudden blur of movement he caught out of the corner of his eye.<\/p>\n

“What the devil?”\u00a0 Adam cursed.\u00a0 Now more alert and angry as he glared at the young boy he found partially obscured from view.\u00a0 “What do you think you’re doing?”<\/p>\n

“Barn chores, you know – work!”\u00a0 Joe fired back.\u00a0 He was just as shocked to find his older brother home.\u00a0 Normally his family didn’t come home until suppertime.<\/p>\n

“Oh, well don’t let me stop you.”\u00a0 Adam replied with a slight bow and exaggerated wave of his hand before yawning again.\u00a0 He really wasn’t angry with the young boy; he just didn’t like to be taken by surprise.\u00a0 Returning to the task at hand, he positioned Sport in his stall.<\/p>\n

Little Joe watched as Adam situated his horse in the stall. Not realizing you had to inhale while attempting to light the tobacco, Joe hadn’t had much success with smoking the pipe.\u00a0 Feeling he wouldn’t be able to sneak away with Adam watching, and not wanting Adam to find out that he’d borrowed his pipe without asking, Joe dropped it to the floor behind a hay bale.\u00a0 He’d just have to retrieve it later.<\/p>\n

“All done!”\u00a0 Joe announced loudly while walking towards the barn door with his hands tucked into his front pants pockets.\u00a0 He wanted to give the appearance that he was more innocent and confident than he was currently feeling.\u00a0 Reaching the doorway, he began to whistle a slightly off key and broken nervous sounding tune.<\/p>\n

“Hum, yeah whatever.”\u00a0 Adam sleepily replied unbuckling the cinch of the saddle.<\/p>\n

Completing the task of removing Sport’s saddle and bridle, Adam grabbed a couple of towels to begin his horse’s rub down.\u00a0 He’d just retrieved the towels when Adam smelled something that seemed out of place.\u00a0 To him, it smelled like something was burning but the scent was tinged with something that didn’t smell like wood, something strange.\u00a0 The burning aroma seemed to be coming from the direction of the open doorway.\u00a0 Shaking his head, Adam went back to his task at hand and chuckled to himself, Hoss ain’t going to be happy when he hears that Hop Sing has burned dinner.<\/p>\n

The acrid stench continue to intensify and begun to get Adam’s full attention.\u00a0 Looking over from Sport’s right flank, Adam saw the wisps of smoke rising from the far corner.\u00a0 Immediately Adam charged forward, he paused momentarily at the sight.<\/p>\n

In the one corner of the barn was a bale of hay, partially engulfed in flames.\u00a0 Realizing he needed to act quickly before the barn wall caught fire, Adam dropped the towels he held and rushed forward to grab the bundle.\u00a0 In doing so, the bale came apart falling into more pieces.\u00a0 Now more burning piles were scattered about the floor and catching quickly onto more hay that was strewn about the barn.<\/p>\n

Now more panicked, Adam grabbed a blanket from a nearby stable wall and tried to beat the flames down.\u00a0 The more he swung the blanket, the more the fire seemed to spread.\u00a0 Coughing, Adam rubbed his stinging eyes and ran from the barn towards the horse trough.<\/p>\n

Little Joe was sitting on the porch waiting for Adam to leave the barn.\u00a0 He watched in surprise, as Adam seemed to stumble from the entrance of the barn towards the water trough.\u00a0 Jumping to his feet, Joe ran to assist his brother.<\/p>\n

Adam was beginning to pump the handle to fill the trough when his baby brother appeared at his elbow.<\/p>\n

“Joe, get back.\u00a0 Get into the house!”\u00a0 Adam ordered.\u00a0 He was worried that his baby brother would follow him back into the barn.<\/p>\n

Joe could only stare at his brother, dumbfounded by Adam’s disheveled appearance and abrupt actions.\u00a0 Looking back towards the barn, he understood Adam’s behavior when flames appeared on the outer wall.\u00a0 He eagerly grabbed the pump handle that Adam had abandoned in favor of a bucket.<\/p>\n

Seeing his brother’s actions, Adam was infuriated.\u00a0 He grabbed Joe by his upper left arm and bodily threw the boy several feet across the yard toward the ranch house, where Joe landed heavily upon his knees.<\/p>\n

“GET IN THE HOUSE NOW!” Adam ordered before running back towards the barn with two pails of water held tightly in his hands.<\/p>\n

Joe sat stunned staring back over his shoulder at his oldest brother; he couldn’t believe Adam’s violent actions.\u00a0 Adam had never been so abrupt in his handling of him in all of his life.\u00a0 Getting to his feet quickly, Joe ran for the kitchen door screaming “FIRE!”<\/p>\n

Hop Sing ran to the door in alarm when he heard the young master’s yell.\u00a0 Throwing open the door, he was knocked backward by a very frightened young boy as Little Joe charged into the kitchen.<\/p>\n

“Barn’s on fire,” Joe yelled, almost deafening the oriental cook.<\/p>\n

Nodding his head in acknowledgement of Joe’s pronouncement, Hop Sing took Joe’s arm and directed him toward the kitchen table.\u00a0 “Lil boy stay in kitchen.”\u00a0 Hop Sing instructed.<\/p>\n

“No!”\u00a0 Joe shouted, pulling his arm free from the cook’s grasp and ran back towards the yard, then down to the corral yelling “FIRE”, the entire way.<\/p>\n

Adam raced to the barn with filled water buckets in his hands then back to the water trough.\u00a0 His mind reeled from the multiple trips; the repetitive movements performed in a daze.\u00a0 The fire was spreading too rapidly.\u00a0 Already the front and one side wall was involved and now several stalls were threatened.\u00a0 Glancing above him, Adam saw the flames begin to creep across the loft floor raining burning ashes down upon him.\u00a0 Realizing that the barn might be a lost cause, Adam turned his attention towards the stock.<\/p>\n

Opening the stall to Little Joe’s pony, Adam slapped the horse on the rump and with a startled whinny the animal fled through the open doorway into the yard.\u00a0 Next Adam removed his own horse, which was closest to the rapidly growing blaze.\u00a0 He lost several precious minutes trying to get the agitated animal to take his bit so he could lead him from the barn.\u00a0 Once he released Sport in the yard, Adam found Hop Sing racing towards him from the direction of the house.<\/p>\n

“Alert Pa.”\u00a0 Adam barked with a voice rough from acrid smoke.<\/p>\n

Understanding the young man’s implicit instructions, Hop Sing ran for the ranch house where he retrieved a shotgun and shells.\u00a0 Returning to the yard, Hop Sing pointed the weapon in the direction of the range where Ben Cartwright would be, he loaded and fired three distinct shots.<\/p>\n

***************<\/p>\n

Ben and Hoss Cartwright rode into the yard of the Ponderosa at a gallop.\u00a0 They were followed by a couple of the ranch hands that had been riding the range with them.\u00a0 Ben’s stomach lurched at the sight of the burning barn.\u00a0 Half of the upper floor had already collapsed and one wall was totally engulfed in flames.<\/p>\n

To an untrained eye it would appear that pandemonium seemed to rein.\u00a0 Although the situation looked to be in total chaos it was in reality, quite under control.\u00a0 Standing at the water trough, one of the horse wranglers manned the pump that kept the trough filled, while other hands filled buckets and passed them down the line where they were dumped onto the spreading flames, in an attempt to douse the growing inferno.<\/p>\n

Jumping from his horse, Ben scanned the general area searching for his sons.\u00a0 He spotted the family cook sitting on the bottom rail of the barn corral.\u00a0 The small oriental man looked spent and was covered with soot.\u00a0 There were black streaks caused by soot and sweat, which ran down his face to drip upon his light blue silk clothes.<\/p>\n

“Hop Sing!”\u00a0 Ben called out running towards the man, who barely looked up in response.<\/p>\n

Hoss followed closely on his father’s heels.\u00a0 He could sense that something was terribly wrong and continued to search the yard for any sign of Adam or Little Joe.<\/p>\n

“Hop Sing,” Ben repeated the man’s name, thinking that maybe the cook hadn’t heard him over all the yelling of commands and the roar of the fire.<\/p>\n

This was the moment that Hop Sing had dreaded.\u00a0 He had to tell his employer the sad news.<\/p>\n

“Hop Sing!”\u00a0 Panicked by the man’s dazed behavior and worried about the fate of his sons.\u00a0 Ben seized the small man by his upper arms and hauled him to his feet, giving the oriental a sharp shake.<\/p>\n

His mind still numb by what had happened, Hop Sing forced himself to respond to the older man’s demands.<\/p>\n

“Little Joe?”\u00a0 Ben questioned, feeling the fear rise in his throat, causing him to choke on the words.<\/p>\n

“In house.”\u00a0 Hop Sing minimally responded.\u00a0 Dropping his head he closed his eyes, unable to watch the grief he knew would soon be there.<\/p>\n

Ben’s relief in hearing his youngest was safe was instantly replaced with dread as he watched Hop Sing lower his head.<\/p>\n

“Adam?” Ben could barely utter the name of his firstborn son.<\/p>\n

“In barn.”<\/p>\n

***************<\/p>\n

After leaving Hop Sing in the yard with the instructions to notify his father, Adam immersed his body in the water trough before heading back towards the inferno.\u00a0 He raced toward the stall in the far corner.\u00a0 It was where Hoss’s mare and her two-day old colt were bedded.<\/p>\n

The mare danced back and forth, whinnying loudly in a frightened protest, its nostrils were flared at the acrid smell of burning wood and hay.\u00a0 The small newborn colt sidled to the far wall, scared by his mother’s actions.<\/p>\n

Adam approached the mare slowly, his hands outstretched he tried to talk calmly to the agitated mare.\u00a0 His approach and the smell of wet soot that clung to his clothes and person only aggravated the horse more.<\/p>\n

“There girl, shhhh, it’s going to be alright.”\u00a0 Adam soothed as he neared the horse.\u00a0 He threw his body backward and landed heavily onto his back when the animal reared onto her hind legs and crashed back down just mere feet from him.<\/p>\n

Looking around, Adam spied a horse blanket on the stall wall.\u00a0 Grabbing it, he again approached the mare hoping to cover the spooked horse’s face.\u00a0 Once again, the mare snorted in anger and threatened to trample him.\u00a0 Adam narrowly escaped being crushed by its front forelegs, by tucking his tall frame into a ball and somersaulting to the back wall of the barn.<\/p>\n

Adam’s attention was drawn away from the frightened horse at the sound of snapping timbers and splintering wood.\u00a0 Glancing about, Adam spotted the small terrified colt.\u00a0 Throwing the blanket about the infant horse, Adam grabbed the animal into his arms as the loft came crashing down upon their heads.<\/p>\n

***************<\/p>\n

Letting go of the small man’s arms, Ben turned towards the barn at a run.\u00a0 Hoss who had been standing nearby, had overheard the interchange between his father and the family servant and rushed forward to intervene.\u00a0 Grabbing his father in a bear hug from behind, Hoss stopped the elder Cartwright’s advance.<\/p>\n

“Let me go Hoss.”\u00a0 Ben grumbled the order to his middle son as he struggled to push Hoss away, but Hoss held on firmly to his father.<\/p>\n

“Get back!”\u00a0 Came the yell of one of the ranch hands that had been throwing the buckets of water upon the flames.<\/p>\n

The warning command was soon followed by the loud crackling of enormous flames then the snapping of burning timbers as one of the walls of the structure collapsed.\u00a0 Ben and Hoss could only watch as the building lurched to one side before the weakened roof toppled, replacing the now fallen wall.<\/p>\n

“Adam,” Ben whispered in despair feeling the life drain from his body, he sank to his knees on the dirt and ashes covered ground.<\/p>\n

***************<\/p>\n

“Leave me alone Joe, let me sleep.”\u00a0 Adam mumbled feeling small dull thumps to his chest.\u00a0 Drowsy from recent unconsciousness and a lack of oxygen, Adam misread the insistent behavior.<\/p>\n

“OUCH!”\u00a0 Adam exclaimed feeling a sharp bite to his chest.<\/p>\n

Adam awoke to a very dark, hot and cramped space.\u00a0 Dazed and confused, he struggled to remember what had got him into this situation when he heard the small whinny of the colt he held in his arms.<\/p>\n

Adam found his body wedged between the fallen loft and the back barn wall.\u00a0 His feet were propped up on the wall in a forty-five degree angle to his body and his back leaned against the still smoldering remains of the loft floor.\u00a0 Cradled in his lap, was Hoss’s infant colt.\u00a0 He felt the colt struggle in his arms to get free.<\/p>\n

Coughing, Adam fought to breathe and felt the heat intensifying on his back.\u00a0 He knew they would bake alive if they didn’t get out of there soon.\u00a0 Carefully shifting the weight of the colt on his lap, Adam freed his right leg.\u00a0 Positioning his foot, Adam kicked out with all of his remaining strength at the wooden wall before him.<\/p>\n

***************<\/p>\n

“Mr. Cartwright, Mr. Cartwright!”\u00a0 The lanky cowhand ran forward to where the distraught Ben Cartwright sat on the porch being comforted by his equally tearful sons.\u00a0 “Come quick!\u00a0 Mr. Cartwright.”<\/p>\n

Sensing that the cowhands may have found something, Hoss quickly helped his father to his feet.\u00a0 The three Cartwrights ran to follow the man to what remained of the charred barn.\u00a0 All three froze at the sight that greeted them.\u00a0 There at the back of the barn wall were two ranch hands trying to pull some of the boards free.\u00a0 Stepping forward from his father and brother, Hoss pushed the two men aside and ripped the boards free with his bare hands.<\/p>\n

Hoss leaned into the small opening.\u00a0 Feeling the leather of a boot and the rough jean material of a pant leg, Hoss’s large hand encircled his brother’s limb and pulled firmly.<\/p>\n

Ben rushed forward as he saw his oldest son’s body pulled free from the still smoldering ruins.\u00a0 Gently, he took his son into his arms, while Hoss took the small bundle from Adam’s limp form.<\/p>\n

Adam felt the sharp sting deep in his lungs as fresh air was once again drawn into the smoke-filled oxygen deprived organs.\u00a0 His eyes stung, his back burned and he could barely lift his eyelids.\u00a0 With blurry sight, Adam gazed up to his father’s tear filled eyes.\u00a0 Unable to hold his head upright from the pain and exhaustion, Adam’s head lolled to one side.\u00a0 There was his big-hearted brother Hoss, holding the partially draped small colt, with one end of the blanket dragging upon the ground.\u00a0 Adam could feel his own heart break for his little brother watching Hoss’s shoulders shake in uncontrollable sobs, while holding the unmoving form of his colt.<\/p>\n

Using what remained of his strength; Adam turned his head back to his father.<\/p>\n

“I’m so sorry Pa.”\u00a0 Adam uttered in a barely audible whisper.\u00a0 Totally spent, his head fell limply against his father’s chest.<\/p>\n

***************<\/p>\n

Ben sat at his eldest son’s bedside, watching the uneven rise and fall of Adam’s chest while his child wrestled to draw air into his damaged lungs.\u00a0 Even though Adam had suffered some burns, bruises and cuts to his face, back, chest and arms, and was suffering the aftereffects of severe smoke inhalation, the doctor had assured Ben that his son’s injuries weren’t life threatening.\u00a0 With serious bed rest, Adam would be up and about within a week.\u00a0 Bowing his head in silent prayer, Ben gave thanks to his God for sparing his son’s life.<\/p>\n

Ben’s attention was drawn back to his firstborn at the sound of a very hacking painful cough.\u00a0 Seeing his son’s eyes slightly open, Ben slid closer to Adam’s bed and placed his hand gently upon his arm.<\/p>\n

“Adam?”<\/p>\n

Lying in a slight upright position, Adam adjusted his head slightly on the pillow to glance in the direction of his father’s voice.\u00a0 His eyes stung and watered, as he tried to focus on his father’s face.<\/p>\n

“Pa.”<\/p>\n

“Shhh, Adam.\u00a0 You’re gonna be fine son, you’re gonna be alright.”\u00a0 Calmly, Ben reassured his son.\u00a0 Reaching back to the nightstand, he dipped a washcloth in the cool water then turned back to bath his son’s sore reddened face.\u00a0 Noticing the way that Adam was squinting his eyes, Ben once again moistened the washcloth from the basin, then folded the cloth and laid it gently across Adam’s eyes.<\/p>\n

Adam found almost instant relief to the burning sensation.\u00a0 Relaxed once more, Adam drifted off to sleep.\u00a0 He had no idea how much time had passed while he slept; his next waking thought was the sound of his younger brother’s voice.<\/p>\n

“He awake yet Pa?”\u00a0 Hoss anxiously inquired, walking towards the foot of Adam’s bed from the open doorway.<\/p>\n

Lost in deep thought, Ben had to shake himself back to full awareness to respond to his middle son.<\/p>\n

“Huh, oh Hoss.\u00a0 No son, not yet.”\u00a0 Ben answered with a small smile. He knew how eager Hoss was to talk to his older brother.\u00a0 He really didn’t consider his son’s brief moment of consciousness earlier in the night as Adam being fully awake.<\/p>\n

“Ya let me know when he does?”\u00a0 Hoss insisted bowing his head slightly and looking toward his father with dazzling sky blue eyes that twinkled beneath partially shielded eyelids.<\/p>\n

“Yes, I will son.\u00a0 I promise.”\u00a0 Smiling patiently, Ben looked at his large son.\u00a0 It was the third time Hoss had made this request.<\/p>\n

“Don’t bother.”\u00a0 A gravelly deep hoarse sounding voice replied from the direction of the pillow on the bed.<\/p>\n

“Adam, you awake?”\u00a0 Hoss eagerly exclaimed moving closer to his father.<\/p>\n

“I am now.”\u00a0 The painfully harsh and scratchy voice replied.\u00a0 Adam weakly raised a hand to remove the damp cloth that still covered his eyes.<\/p>\n

“Here son, let me get that.”\u00a0 Ben gently removed the washcloth from Adam’s face before Adam could reach it.<\/p>\n

Adam and Ben watched and listened while the large over-grown teen practically bounced up and down in joy.\u00a0 Hoss was elated and barely able to contain his emotions while he told them of the miraculous recovery of his little black colt.<\/p>\n

***************<\/p>\n

Stepping over fallen partially burned timbers, Ben and Hoss walked among what was left of the barn.\u00a0 Several of the ranch hands had already removed and disposed of the body of Hoss’s mare, for which Ben was grateful.\u00a0 They were scanning the debris for anything that could be salvaged, and the cause of the blaze.<\/p>\n

“Looks like it started over here Pa.”\u00a0 Hoss indicated with a meaty right finger.<\/p>\n

Ben walked over to stand beside his son.\u00a0 Staring down, he studied the area of the ground pointed out by his son.<\/p>\n

“See how it seems to move thataway.”\u00a0 Hoss’s finger traveled from the ground following the path of increasing fire devastation.<\/p>\n

Ben nodded his head in agreement with his son’s observation.\u00a0 He watched Hoss move away, continuing to search for anything that remained of value.\u00a0 Ben’s attention was drawn back to the place the fire had started.\u00a0 Using his foot, he displaced the pile of ashes and partially burned hay.\u00a0 He was not happy with what he found.<\/p>\n

***************<\/p>\n

“How are you feeling son?”\u00a0 Ben Cartwright asked as he entered his oldest son’s room then walked over to Adam’s bedside.<\/p>\n

“Better.”\u00a0 Adam croaked in reply, his voice still gravely and coarse due to the irritation caused by all the smoke he’d inhaled.<\/p>\n

“That’s good.\u00a0 Mind if we talk?”<\/p>\n

Adam shook his head in a silent ‘no’, trying to minimize speaking.\u00a0 Shifting gingerly in his bed to give his father his full attention, Adam laid the book he’d been reading aside.\u00a0 Gazing up to his father’s coal black very intense eyes, he was confused by both the expression he found upon the man’s face, and by the fact that his father chose to remain standing instead of taking the chair next to his bed.\u00a0 For some reason unbeknownst to Adam, his father seemed extremely unhappy, as though he’d been let down by someone or something.<\/p>\n

“Would you care to explain this?”\u00a0 Holding out his right hand, Ben’s voice was tinged with a mixture of anger and regret.\u00a0 There in the palm of his hand sat the charred remains of what was once a pipe, Adam’s pipe.<\/p>\n

Stunned and in disbelief, Adam was speechless as he stared at the object his father held.\u00a0 Raising his eyes from what remained of his pipe, he now recognized the disappointment in his father’s ebony eyes.\u00a0 Adam found an equal share of disappointment to match his father’s when he considered the man’s implied accusation and poor logic.\u00a0 Adam now realized that it must have been the pipe that caused the fire, and his father had erroneously determined that if the pipe belonged to Adam, then Adam must have caused the fire.<\/p>\n

Adam was rankled by the implication that was being made.\u00a0 He was also angry by the way his father was treating him like some itinerant schoolboy who lacked good common sense.<\/p>\n

During his last year in New England, Adam had grappled with the decision to either return to the Ponderosa or stay in the East.\u00a0 Now he seriously doubted he’d made the right one.<\/p>\n

In the back of his mind, he knew his father would always think of him as that shy black-haired little boy who’d traveled west with him.\u00a0 He felt he at least deserved credit for the man that he’d become.\u00a0 In Adam’s opinion he had sacrificed culture, civility and career to return home.\u00a0 All he wanted now was for his own father to accept and treat him as the man he had become, not the small reserved child he once was.<\/p>\n

Knowing his father was awaiting a response.\u00a0 Adam was very aware that his father was expecting an apology, or at the very least, some type of explanation.\u00a0 Adam felt his father deserved neither, and replied with a very bitter, “No”.<\/p>\n

Ben was taken aback by Adam’s abrupt and seemingly resentful response. He recognized Adam’s change in demeanor and stubborn set of his jaw, and knew he’d get nowhere in attempting to discuss the subject further.\u00a0 Nodding his head in acceptance of Adam’s single word reply, Ben departed his son’s room.<\/p>\n

Walking slowly down the steps of the wooden staircase, Ben considered his confrontation with his oldest son.\u00a0 Studying the charred pipe he held in his hands, he wondered if he’d made an error in judgement in accusing his eldest.<\/p>\n

***************<\/p>\n

“Ah huh.”\u00a0 Adam glanced out of the corner of his eye at his large brother who sat perched on the bed beside him.\u00a0 Hoss eagerly recounted for the umpteenth time his tale of how his little baby colt, rejuvenated by the fresh air, came back to life in his arms moments after Adam had lost consciousness.\u00a0 Adam returned his full attention to his drawing, re-evaluating the angle of the barn roof.<\/p>\n

“You should see him Adam.\u00a0 His coat is just as shiny and black as coal.\u00a0 He’s just the smartest little thing.”\u00a0 Hoss’s chest puffed with pride.\u00a0 Since the loss of the colt’s mother, Hoss had become the little one’s sole caregiver.<\/p>\n

“I’m sure he is.”\u00a0 Giving his brother a thoughtful sideways glance from the corner of his eye; Adam could tell how enamoured his little brother was with the small colt.<\/p>\n

“He takes his bottle real good too Adam.\u00a0 No fussing, you don’t have to force him at all.\u00a0 He’s a real good eater.”\u00a0 Hoss continued his rambling about the newborn in his care.<\/p>\n

“Sounds like someone else I know.”\u00a0 Adam teased, before issuing a light hearted warning.\u00a0 “Better make sure he doesn’t get chubby, or he won’t fit into his stall.”<\/p>\n

“Ah Adam, ain’t nuttin’ wrong with being a little chubby.” Hoss’s cherub face reddened slightly then patted his own broad stomach in response.<\/p>\n

“That’s it!”\u00a0 Hoss exclaimed.<\/p>\n

“What’s it?”\u00a0 Baffled by the abrupt change in conversation, Adam turned his full attention to the young man who sat beside him.<\/p>\n

“His name.”\u00a0 Hoss replied, looking back at his older brother as if he were daft.<\/p>\n

“Whose name?”\u00a0 Unable to follow his brother’s leap of logic, Adam now stared dumbfounded at Hoss wondering where he’d got lost in this conversation.<\/p>\n

“Chubby.\u00a0 I’ll call him Chubby.”<\/p>\n

***************<\/p>\n

Ben Cartwright sat at his desk trying to concentrate on the ranch ledgers before him.\u00a0 He needed to rework some of the ranch accounts to cover the expense of rebuilding the barn and replacing lost equipment, gear and supplies.\u00a0 Ben struggled to remain focused on the task at hand, but just couldn’t maintain his concentration.<\/p>\n

Opening the side desk drawer, Ben retrieved the charred remains of Adam’s pipe.\u00a0 He turned it slowly in examination between his hands, studying the ruined implement.\u00a0 It had been two days since his confrontation with his eldest son over his finding, and with each waking hour he had regretted his hasty actions.\u00a0 He was fairly certain that he’d made a very false accusation, but who else had access to Adam’s pipe and what was it doing in the barn.<\/p>\n

Tucking the pipe into his vest pocket, Ben rose from his desk and walked toward the front door.\u00a0 He needed fresh air and time to think.\u00a0 He needed to find a way to apologize to his son.<\/p>\n

In deep thought, Ben shoved his hands into his front pockets and walked slowly across the front porch studying the planking beneath his feet.\u00a0 Glancing up, he looked across the yard to what remained of the ranch’s barn.\u00a0 He was surprised to see someone there, sifting among the ruins.\u00a0 Quietly, he made his way across the yard.<\/p>\n

“Looking for this?”<\/p>\n

Startled by his father’s deep and foreboding tone of voice, Little Joe jumped backwards and almost lost his balance. He swallowed deeply and felt the blood drain from his face when he recognized the object in his father’s outstretched hand.<\/p>\n

***************<\/p>\n

Hoss and Adam’s attention was drawn to the open doorway to Adam’s bedroom.\u00a0 They watched in stunned silence when their father abruptly entered the room with their younger brother in tow.<\/p>\n

“Adam, your brother has something to tell you.”\u00a0 All three sons understood that Joe had just been given an implicit order to speak.<\/p>\n

“I, uh, I borrowed your pipe, Adam.”\u00a0 Joe swallowed nervously, lowering his eyes to study the quilt that covered his oldest brother’s bed.<\/p>\n

Adam studied the fidgeting youth near the foot of his bed, whose upper right arm was still firmly held, in their father’s grasp.\u00a0 The small boy he’d left when he went to college was a bundle of curiosity and never-ending questions.\u00a0 The boy on the cusp of his teen years standing before him now was so much different.\u00a0 This one was filled with boundless energy and a penchant for mischief, who’d decided long ago that it was easier to ask for forgiveness, than to ask for permission.<\/p>\n

“Borrowed?\u00a0 You mean took.\u00a0 You took something that you were expressly told not to touch.”\u00a0 Correcting the boy’s verb selection, Ben intended for Joe to understand that not only had he taken something that did not belong to him, but also to try and re-enforce a lesson he thought he’d driven home the week before.<\/p>\n

“You never told me not to touch it.”\u00a0 Joe’s hazel green eyes looked up to his father’s in mild defiance at the elder Cartwright’s accusation.<\/p>\n

Ben was taken aback by his young son’s attempt to defy him.\u00a0 Before he had a chance to react, Joe finished his argument.<\/p>\n

“You told me not to touch your pipe, you never said nuttin’ ’bout Adam’s.”<\/p>\n

Bemused by his baby brother’s petulance, Adam blew out a small puff of air from between pursed lips in amusement, and tried to stifle a small chuckle.\u00a0 He glanced to Hoss and saw him shaking his head in amazement at their little brother’s bravado.\u00a0 Someday, that little brother of ours is going to make one fine attorney – if he survives this day<\/em>, Adam mused.<\/p>\n

Ben blinked and sputtered at his youngest son’s leap of logic, but was unswayed by the boy’s attempt to cloud the issue with semantics.\u00a0 As far as he was concerned, Joe had just up the ante on the punishment kitty.<\/p>\n

“And\u2026” Ben cuffed the curly haired boy behind his head forcing him to take a step closer to Adam’s bed.\u00a0 The imposing figure of his father prodded, glaring down at the boy beside him causing Joe to swallow nervously.<\/p>\n

“I’m sorry that Pa blamed you and got mad at ya.”\u00a0 Joe muttered half-heartedly.\u00a0 Until minutes ago, he didn’t even know that the pipe was the cause of the blaze, or that his father had accused his oldest brother for the destruction of the barn.\u00a0 Somewhat resentful, Little Joe still didn’t understand why he was apologizing for something his father had done.<\/p>\n

Adam nodded his acceptance of Joe’s request for forgiveness before turning an expectant gaze to his father.\u00a0 Seeing his son’s eyes, Ben knew that he too owed his son an apology.<\/p>\n

“I too am sorry son.”\u00a0 Ben earnestly attempted to atone for his wrongful accusation.<\/p>\n

***************<\/p>\n

With some trepidation, Ben warily walked to the entrance to his eldest son’s room after another ‘discussion’ with his youngest.\u00a0 Looking to his middle son he made a simple request.<\/p>\n

“Leave us please.”<\/p>\n

Hoss’s eyes raised in alarm towards his father then looked anxiously at his older brother.\u00a0 Seeing Adam nod his head in confirmation, Hoss rose from the bed and quietly departed the room.<\/p>\n

As Hoss passed him in the doorway, his father laid his hand upon the teenager’s shoulder and gave a slight reassuring squeeze followed by a slight nod.\u00a0 Hoss replied with a slight pursing of his lips and a shy dip of his head.<\/p>\n

After Hoss’s departure, Ben strolled slowly into Adam’s room, pausing slightly to look at some of his son’s belongings and very much aware of his son studying his every move.\u00a0 He noticed some of the Eastern style clothing in the wardrobe that had just arrived with Adam’s trunk, the rolls of architectural drawings propped in the far corner and some of the book titles upon the wall shelf before stopping at Adam’s dresser.\u00a0 There upon the dresser he discovered Adam’s plans for the new barn.\u00a0 Ben marveled at the carefully drawn structure, each angle precise and all measurements exact, so professional in every detail.\u00a0 Ben’s heart swelled with pride as he traced a finger over the sharp lines.\u00a0 Turning away from the blueprint, he reached for the straight back chair and caught a glimpse of a ornate silver frame placed next to a small china music box adorned with cherubs, sitting on the nightstand beside his son’s bed.\u00a0 The corner of his mouth raised in a small loving smile at the image of his first beloved wife.\u00a0 Drawing the chair closer to the bed, Ben sat down to speak with his son, and found he didn’t know how to begin or what to say.<\/p>\n

Adam eyed his father while he made his slow circuit of his bedroom.\u00a0 He noticed his father surveying his drawing, before stopping to pay a silent homage to Adam’s mother.\u00a0 Adam waited patiently for this father to speak, but found no words forthcoming from the man.\u00a0 Adam had only one thing he wanted to know, so he broke the deafening silence by voicing his single inquiry.<\/p>\n

“When?”<\/p>\n

The question seemed so simple, so simple to ask, but to Ben too difficult to explain.\u00a0 Ben looked across to the dark intense eyes not so unlike his own and searched for the words to satisfy his son’s inquiry.\u00a0 His son, the child Elizabeth had bore him, this child who was a child no more.\u00a0 Gone now was the round soft cherub like face once covered in soft peach fuzz, replaced by the dark stubble of a beard upon a strong set jaw on a face with rugged features and high set cheekbones.\u00a0 Gone also, were the freckles that once adorned the small nose and soft velvet-like tender cheeks, replaced by weather worn dark sun-tanned skin.\u00a0 Gone too, was the shy reserved little boy who needed his father to protect, encourage and guide him, replaced by a very self-assured, intelligent and quite capable man.<\/p>\n

Smiling with love for his cherished child and longing for days now gone, Ben reached out and brushed away a lock of raven black hair from his son’s forehead.\u00a0 He gave his son a small sad smile before responding with the only explanation that he could think to give.<\/p>\n

“Be patient with me son, I’m still learning.<\/p>\n

The End<\/strong><\/p>\n

<\/div>\n

<\/g><\/svg><\/i> \"Loading\"<\/p>\n

<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Summary:\u00a0One of the Cartwright sons learns about the evils of smoking.<\/p>\n

Rated:\u00a0 G\u00a0 (9,500 words)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":10520,"featured_media":13010,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"template-full-width-post.php","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[23,30],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-14997","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-drama","category-prequels","wpcat-23-id","wpcat-30-id"],"a3_pvc":{"activated":true,"total_views":1822,"today_views":0},"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/Ben-1.jpg?fit=234%2C234&ssl=1","jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":18230,"url":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/?p=18230","url_meta":{"origin":14997,"position":0},"title":"Gusty Gumption (by PSW)","author":"PSW","date":"August 19, 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"Summary: A little vignette following (at some point later) the events of 'A Dime's Worth of Glory'. Written for the Sept 1 Pinecone challenge and expanded for inclusion here. Prompt: Whisky for my men, beer for my horses (by Scott Emerich\/Toby Keith).\u00a0 Contains phrases from both the song and the\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Humor"","block_context":{"text":"Humor","link":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/?cat=4"},"img":{"alt_text":"newspaper","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/A8B95BC9-E53D-40E8-BD21-6DC03B08C9BF.jpeg?fit=1178%2C1034&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/A8B95BC9-E53D-40E8-BD21-6DC03B08C9BF.jpeg?fit=1178%2C1034&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/A8B95BC9-E53D-40E8-BD21-6DC03B08C9BF.jpeg?fit=1178%2C1034&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/A8B95BC9-E53D-40E8-BD21-6DC03B08C9BF.jpeg?fit=1178%2C1034&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/A8B95BC9-E53D-40E8-BD21-6DC03B08C9BF.jpeg?fit=1178%2C1034&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":10359,"url":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/?p=10359","url_meta":{"origin":14997,"position":1},"title":"Hoss Defined (by bahj)","author":"bahj","date":"September 15, 2012","format":false,"excerpt":"Summary: You'll find it under \"H\" in the dictionary :0) Rated: Family Friendly \/ Word count: 1140","rel":"","context":"In "Prequel"","block_context":{"text":"Prequel","link":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/?cat=30"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/05\/Hoss.jpg?fit=640%2C480&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/05\/Hoss.jpg?fit=640%2C480&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/05\/Hoss.jpg?fit=640%2C480&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":15204,"url":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/?p=15204","url_meta":{"origin":14997,"position":2},"title":"Younger (by PSW)","author":"PSW","date":"September 2, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"Summary:\u00a0 A quiet, light moment among family. Rating: K\u00a0 \u00a0Word Count: 519 Scenes From Our Next Life Series, links to stories of this series included.","rel":"","context":"In "Drama"","block_context":{"text":"Drama","link":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/?cat=23"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/09\/IMG_2442.jpg?fit=766%2C639&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/09\/IMG_2442.jpg?fit=766%2C639&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/09\/IMG_2442.jpg?fit=766%2C639&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/09\/IMG_2442.jpg?fit=766%2C639&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":15348,"url":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/?p=15348","url_meta":{"origin":14997,"position":3},"title":"Joe Cartwright – Magician! (by Questfan)","author":"Questfan","date":"October 26, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"SUMMARY: A Bonanza story celebrating that fun side of Michael in his role as Joe Cartwright. Make it scary, funny, or dramatic . . . or all three! 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Will Ben and the family be able to help him get past his fears? 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